


The Selection (Percy Jackson AU)

by Booknerd_987



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-20
Updated: 2017-02-01
Packaged: 2018-06-09 14:47:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6911506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Booknerd_987/pseuds/Booknerd_987
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Annabeth didn't want to be in the selection. Her life was going perfectly until one day her heart was broken by Luke and was entered into the selection by her best friends. Annabeth realizes that Prince Percy is not what she thought at all. ~This is pretty bad but I'm not good at summaries</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

I woke up to the sound of my two little brothers running around in the house. I rubbed my eyes as I fully woke up. I get up from my bed and look outside my small window. The sea breeze flew so faintly and filled me with warmth. It's a beautiful day in California. I live in a small house near the beach with my dad, stepmom and my two half-brothers. I never knew my mother, she left my dad when I was born. But dad says I have her beautiful grey eyes. 

I head downstairs into the kitchen. Where Bobby and Matthew are playing with their legos and mom (stepmom) was making pancakes. Dad was watching TV and was on the news channel. They are doing a report on the prince and how he is old enough to marry and other stuff like that. His name is Perseus after the demigod from Greek mythology. I sat down next to dad and watch the news with him. Apparently the royal family is hosting a selection for Prince Perseus to select a wife. They sent applications to girls that are in the range 18-20 years old. I get up from the couch and grab a plate of the pancakes mom made for the family. As everyone sits down mom took out a letter, she opened it and read it. 

"Dear Family, in the census you took this year it appears to be that there is a girl that is around the age 18-20 that is eligible to enter the selection. If the girl is interested, then fill out the application and give it to the city hall in your small town by 10pm today. We will pick one girl from each state so good luck to all of you." she put away the letter "Annabeth do you want to enter the selection, the prince seems like a very nice fellow and you two would make a perfect couple" 

I look at her and shake my head. "Mom, no way. I don't think so, he seems shallow and dumb. Plus remember I have Luke with me and I'm very happy." I said looking confident. Mom looked at me then sat down and put the application away. I know she doesn't like Luke but I know she will learn to like him. Luke has been my boyfriend since I was 17 years old. We have been together for 2 years now, she should probably start to think of him like part of the family. I finish my breakfast and change into a beautiful sundress and curl my hair. My skin was sun kissed from the time I went surfing with my dad. I grab my converse and run down the stairs. 

"Later dad, meeting Thalia and Clarisse at the park then seeing Luke after that." I say kissing my dad's head and waving at mom and my little brothers and head out the door.

I run to the park where Thalia and Clarisse were waiting for me by the benches. I see them and wave at them. They run up to me and we all hug and sit down. We start to talk about the randomest things like who was the cutest celebrity and other stuff like that. We decided to grab a starbucks, so we went and of course I ordered a Frappuccino. 

"So Annabeth, how's Luke?" Thalia asked while we sat down near the window. 

"He's fine. We are going on a date today, that's why I wore my favorite sundress." I said happily while sipping on my drink. "So Clarisse what about you and Chris huh? I see the way he looks at you and the way you look at him."

Clarisse blushed "Well there is no progress yet, but I think he might be planning on asking me on a date." I smiled very excited for my friend. She has liked Chris for a long time and it finally seems like the relationship she has dreamed of is going to happen. As we kept talking hours passed until it was 4 o'clock and I had to leave for my date with Luke. Thalia and Clarisse decided to walk me there. 

We arrived at the fancy restaurant Luke was going to take me to today. We all walked in and looked for Luke. Once I saw him I was about to run to him until Thalia stopped me. I gave her a weird look and she just pointed at Luke. I turned around to what I saw as Luke kissing a girl. And that girl wasn't me....Tears came upon my eyes and I saw that he looked at me and his eyes widened.

"Annabeth this isn't what it looks like" He said.

"It's exactly what it looks like. Luke we’re done. I don't want to see you ever again" I started crying and ran out of the place. I heard Thalia and Clarisse yell at Luke for what he did. He kissed another girl how could I ever be with a guy who cheated on me with another girl. I ran all the way into the park and sat there and cried. My heart was shattered. I promised myself that I would never fall in love ever again and this time I would accomplish that because all that love brought for me is pain and suffering. 

I walk in my house and head straight to my room ignoring all the questions my family was asking. I shut the door and wept. After a couple of hours after I calmed down, I heard a small knock and saw dad walking in.

"What's wrong Annie?" he said as he sat down next to me in my bed

"Luke and I broke up because I caught him cheating on me with another girl." I said while letting a few tears down my face. 

"Oh honey that's horrible" He said as he hugged me. "Annabeth I know this may seem hard right now but you still have your life ahead of you. Don't let this kid ruin that for you. I'm sure you will find the perfect boy who will love you to the moon and back. He will love you for who you are. And besides I never liked that Luke." I hugged him back and thanked him for the advice. He kissed me on the top of my head and then left. I looked at my clock and saw that time had flown by it was 8pm. I decided to sleep early so I tucked myself in and slept. 

I woke up to the sound of my best friends screaming at my ear for me to get up. The TV was loud and my name was on it. Why was my name on it? As I listened to what the reporter said, she said I had been chosen as the california girl for the selection. Oh My Gods! 

"I didn't sign up for the selection!" I said looking at all of my family and friends.

"We know. I filled the application with your name and sent it in for you to forget about that idiot and focus on what you actually deserve. You totally deserve a prince." Thalia said smiling. I looked at her with wide eyes. 

Days passed by and people came and started to get me ready for the selection. Which was something I wasn't looking forward to....


	2. Chapter 2

People kept entering my house and started to measure me. A lady came up to me and read the rules to me. I wasn't supposed to mess with other contestants, I couldn't bring anything that I owned, I wasn't allowed to have any romantic relationship while I was at the palace, If I were to leave then I would leave with all the dresses and jewelry that I have received, and other boring rules. I signed my name in every paper they handed me and then they all left. They told me to get ready because they would pick me up at 5:00 pm. It was 12:00 pm right now, maybe it was best if I could say goodbye to everyone since I would be leaving soon. 

I hugged my two best friends and promised them that I would write letters since cell phones are forbidden from the palace. They were so happy for me and they kept saying that the prince will love me and that I would become their next queen and things like that. I rolled my eyes at that and thought about that. I don't think I like the prince, I still like Luke even though he broke my heart. It will be very hard to forget him but I mean I will eventually move on and this is supposed to help me. I left the house with Thalia and Clarisse to go get some coffee and we just happened to stumble upon Luke. 

"Annabeth!" He said and walked to me. I gave him a mad look and looked away.

"Let's get coffee somewhere else" I said to Thalia and Clarisse. 

"Annabeth please can we talk?" He said looking at me. I rolled my eyes and I nodded slowly. I told Thalia and Clarisse to meet me at the park. 

"Look Annabeth what you saw was not what it looked like. She kissed me but I didn't kiss her back.You have to believe me." He said pleading. I looked at him shocked that he lied to me. I saw when he leaned in for the kiss.

"Look Luke I don't want anything to do with you anymore. I'm leaving later in the afternoon because I'm in the selection now. Now I'm competing to be the Prince's future wife so please leave me alone. I don't want to see you ever again." I said to him then left without saying a word. I reached the park and I started to cry, Thalia and Clarisse comforted me. We spend a long time talking, about 3 hours to be exact, about the prince. He seemed okay but I have only seen him twice. One time in the parade and the second time on his birthday. So I didn't quite know how he looked like,from what I heard he is really hot but I don't know. 

As my watch struck 5 I left the park and went home and saw the people wait for me and ran to say goodbye to my family. I saw my dad shed tears and so did my mom. They were super proud of me and with all of our goodbyes said they put me in a car then I left my small hometown in California and went to Angeles where the palace is. 

The 4 hour car ride was a little...no it was HORRIBLE. We got to the palace and tons of girls were there. They all led us to a huge room where they started to give makeovers to all of us. I walked around and once they called my name they sat me in a stool and they curled my hair and they put me in a beautiful blue dress and they did my make up. Not very heavy because I had asked them not to do heavy makeup. After I was done they led me into a room filled with others girls, i didn't have any friends here so I decided to go talk to a girl with brown choppy hair that was super pretty. 

"Hi, my name is Annabeth. What's yours?" I said. She looked at me and smiled

"My name is Piper. Nice to meet you." We shook hands. She seemed pretty nice, I think we are going to become close friends. Piper and I got to know each other for a couple of minutes. We talked about each other and our families. After a couple of hours, a couple of maids came into the room and led us to our rooms. As they led each girl to their room, we got to see the palace and its beautiful summer colors. There were 50 girls in the palace so this took a while. I was last since I was from around the area. Piper's room was close too, she was from around here too apparently Alaska didn't want to participate in the selection so they choose two candidates in California. Me and Piper. Her dad is a famous movie star. 

I walk into my room and stare at the beautiful balcony it had. I take a tour of my room...it was breathtaking. My room was the only room which had a balcony and you could the the beautiful palace garden. The room was big but not too big, it had a big walk-in closet and a hug bed. The bathroom had a huge bathtub and a shower. Near the closet was a huge vanity and it had some jewelry already placed in a box. While I was checking out the closet, three maids walked in. 

"Hello, we are your assigned maids for the selection. My name is Amanda" A tall blonde maid said "This is Monica" She said pointing to the maid next to her who had brown hair and was tall. "And this is Ruby" She said to the shy maid who had red hair and cute freckles. 

"Nice to meet you all! My name is Annabeth." I said and smiled at them. Ruby who seemed very shy came out from behind Monica's back and smiled at me. She seemed really young but I didn't ask her age because that would be rude. 

"So we are here to help you with everything. We make the dresses you wear and we help you get your hair and makeup done. And you can call us anytime and we will be here for you." Amanda said smiling. 

"Thank you."I said then she started explaining all the rules for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. After all the formalities, I got to know them. Amanda was the same age as me and she grew up in the palace and became a maid. Monica was sold to the palace by her foster parents, she is 20 years old. Ruby was rescued from a fire and was made a maid. She is 14 years old, see! I was right.

A loud bell snapped us back to reality. It was 9 o'clock which meant it was time for us to meet the prince. My maids helped me fix my hair and makeup. Once they were done, they rushed me out of my room and led me to the living room where everyone else was. I waved goodbye to my maids and went to find Piper. 

I found her next to the window overlooking the gardens. 

"Hey Piper. What's going on?" I asked seeing all the girls excited for this event.

"Well the prince will call your name and he will have a private discussion with you. Half of the girls already went and some were already sent home." sent home?! Wow. The prince must be very shallow and inconsiderate. 

"Have you gone up yet?" I asked. Piper looked at me and nodded. She looked at me then her attention was elsewhere. I turned around and looked behind me, and saw a tall guard with blond hair and sky blue eyes. He looked confident and brave. I looked at Piper and laughed.

"Oh my gods Piper. Stop staring he's going to notice." I said and she laughed but then looked away

"Oh gods, he saw me" She blushed and dragged me to the couches. We were talking about the new movies that came out this year when I heard my name being called. I walk to the door when to door suddenly opens and hits me on the face. I fall on the floor and groan. 

"Are you okay?" a voice asks as they help me up. I kinda snapped at them

"I would be if i wasn't hit by a door, next time you should pay more attention you could really hurt someone with that door." I said rubbing my forehead. He looked ashamed and grabbed the back of his neck. We walked inside the room and I sit on a chair. 

"Well for starters, I'm really sorry about that. I'm so clumsy. Also are you Annabeth?" He asks. I nod and look at his sea green eyes. They were beautiful, I couldn't stop looking at them. He kept looking at me too and I was wondering when the prince was going to get here. 

"Well this introduction did not happen like I wanted to but my name is Prince Perseus or Percy either is fine."

My eyes widen when I realized that I kinda snapped at him. "Oh my Gods. I'm so sorry I didn't mean to snap at you your majesty and Nice to meet you." 

He laughed and I rolled my eyes. "Okay so tell me about yourself" 

"About me? I like surfing, pretty good at it actually. I'm actually a surfing goddess according to my friends. I love to read and I'm kind of a know it all. It kinda hard to believe since I'm a blonde." I say shrugging. "What about you?"

"I like to surf too and I'm a pretty chill guy. I tell pretty good jokes." He said confidently. 

"Sure...." I said rolling my eyes. He looked at me and laughed.

"Okay here is one. Why did the fish fail school?" 

"I don't know" 

"Because his grades were below sea level." He laughed at that. I gave him that weird look and laughed at how stupid that was.

"You're such a seaweed brain!" I said laughing. He looked at me and gave me a weird look. He then laughed at me and said 

"Well you're such a wise girl." I put my hand in my chase as if I was offended. 

"I had a lot of fun talking to you wise girl" He said and got up. I smiled at him.

"Same here seaweed brain" I said and got up. We said our goodbyes and then I left but I caught him smiling at me and waving. I waved at him then went to find Piper. Prince Percy was definitely not what I had expected.


	3. Chapter 3

I laughed a little when my maids helped me put on a nightgown. It was soft and tickled me a little bit. Once I finished getting dressed I went out into the balcony and looked at the moon. It was so beautiful. My mind then wandered off until I heard voices in the garden.

I saw Prince Percy with a Red headed girl who I remembered introduced herself as Rachel. She seemed like a nice girl. I didn't mean to eavesdrop on their date but I couldn't help but wonder what was going on. I looked away after a couple of minutes of just watching them stroll around the garden and kept remembering my conversation with the prince. He was such a seaweed brain. I rolled my eyes and laughed at the thought.

Just as I was about to sleep I heard someone whispering my name. I look around to the room and then look outside and see that Rachel had left and Percy was waving at me. He approached the balcony and and looked at him.

"What?" I asked looking at him with an annoyed look.

"I saw you when I was with Rachel. A little obsessed don't you think?" He laughed. I laughed and rolled my eyes.

"Yeah right, in your dreams seaweed brain." I say and then laugh. He looks at me then smiles.

"Hey meet me tomorrow after lunch in the garden." He said and I smiled.

I raised an eyebrow "Are you asking me out on a date seaweed brain?"

He smiled and nodded "Of course wise girl."

I laughed and smiled at him "I'll see you then Percy" then I went back inside and closed my balcony doors. I sighed and my maids helped me get ready for bed. Once I was ready I tucked myself in and slept the night away.

I woke up to the sound of singing birds and my maids begging me to get up. I got up and took a shower then my maids helped me get ready for breakfast. Amanda and Monica had made this wonderful day dress which was yellow and had flowers on it. They braided my hair and put a flower on the braid and then they gave me some sandals. Once they were done they rushed me out of my room when I see Piper in the distance.

"Hey wait up!" I said. Piper turned around and signaled me to come faster.

"Hey Annabeth you look amazing today!" She said once I caught up to her. I smiled and looked at her

"What no..You look amazing" I said mentioning her dress. She smiled and thanked me. We walked inside the hall and sat down. I caught Percy looking at me and I rolled my eyes at him and laughed. Then I grabbed a pen and with a napkin and wrote A little obsessed now are we? Then gave it to one of the maids who were working today. Instead of having 50 girls we have now 20 girls. The elimination part went by really fast. The only girls I knew that were still part of the selection are Piper, Rachel, Hazel and this girl named Reyna.

I sit next to Piper at the end of the table close enough to Percy to see his reaction to the note but far away for us to talk. Today breakfast was some waffles, which to my liking were very good but what caught my attention was that Percy was eating BLUE waffles. Okay...that is weird. The king and Queen got our attention and started talking about the events that were going to happen while we were here. One of them was the big Thanksgiving Gala they were having this month. I don't know why they are having it in September but I mean if your King and Queen then I guess you can choose when to do it. I looked over to Percy and saw him reading the napkin I sent him. He smiled at me and wrote down something and gave the napkin to the maid next to him. The maid came over and handed me the napkin. Maybe but so are you. I laughed and put the napkin down.

Breakfast ended at 9 so all the girls were to stay in their rooms or the library for at least 3 hours until lunch or leave with the Prince if you had a date. I went to my room and my maids were cleaning. Ruby was sitting there, looking a little sad. I grabbed her hand and mentioned her to wait. I grabbed two white chairs from my room and put them in the balcony. I sat in one of them and she sat in the other I started to do her hair. I brushed it and asked her questions about her life. She answered them quietly and seemed to lighten up a bit after our talk. Apparently her older sister is very ill and can't even walk. I told her everything is going to be okay and that she will get better. She smiled at me and hugged me. She got up and picked up her chair and put it back in its place then went to clean the closet. I grabbed a book from my bookshelf in my room and got on my bed and started reading. 

Hours passed by and I was being shoved out of my room to go lunch. I heard Reyna talking to some other girls about how Rachel already had 2 dates with the prince and how she had none. I stopped for a minute. He already had 2 dates with Rachel?!?!? Wow that is fast, after that I saw Rachel and kept comparing myself to her. OMG am I jealous? no I can't be, I just got here. Oh Gods.. I push away the feeling and walk into the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Weirdos, 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the third chapter


	4. Chapter 4

I laughed as Percy told one of his stupid jokes.   
“I think that one was pretty funny” He said while we walked around the garden. 

“No I don’t think so seaweed brain” I said laughing. He rolled his eyes and laughed. We then started talking about blue food. I found that really weird and he explained why. I found that really cute… Wait what? ugh hate this feeling. I promised myself that I wouldn’t fall for another guy. As we were walking around the garden, children came out and played near us. A little girl walked to us and said.

“Could you please play with us? We’re playing tag” She smiled wide with both of her front teeth missing. I looked at Percy and he nodded. I smiled and her

“Of course.” She then jumped up and down and whistled loudly. I was shocked how she could do that. Five more kids came out where we are and they separated into teams. Percy was on the opposite team. Percy and the little girl played rock, paper, scissors to find out who was going to be it. Percy lost and he was it. 

“You better run wise girl. I’m going to get you first.” He said looking at me. I laughed and gave him a serious face.

“As if, you’ll never catch me” Then I run. I climb a tree but with my dress it makes it harder for me. I look around and see that my balcony is open so I run to my balcony and jump and climb on top of it and run inside my room and change into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt and some converse. Then I run out of my room and jump off my balcony then run into the tree I was hiding in. I saw Percy coming over so I climbed higher. There were a couple of kids at the bottom of the tree discussing their plan. 

I was so distracted that I didn't see Percy on the ground looking at me. 

"I see you wise girl" He said laughing, I turned around surprised and my foot missed a branch and I fell. I waited for the impact but instead was caught by some strong arms. My eyes were shut, but I slowly opened them to see those sea green eyes that I loved. 

Percy looked at me with a worried face and said " Are you okay?"   
I nodded and he smiled and leaned in and whispered in my ear "I got you and I'm never letting you go" 

I blushed as he whispered how beautiful I looked and how he loved my eyes. I wanted to tell him he was handsome and that his eyes were the most wonderful thing I have ever seen but something held me back. What if he did the same thing with the other girls here? Made them feel right at home and sweep them away with the most romantic thing. It's only been two days since I've been here and Percy is making me feel the same way I once felt for Luke. I sighed, my mind made bunch of scenes where Percy whispered in Rachel's ear and other people. The thought of that made me sad, one tear fell out of my eye. 

A loud bell caught us by surprise. It was getting late and we would miss dinner if we stayed any longer. I didn't want to leave Percy's arms and he didn't seem like he wanted to let go of me so we both said goodbye to the little kids playing around and headed inside. He dropped me off at my room and said "I had a lot of fun today"  
I smiled at him, little sad that I wasn't in his arms "Yeah me too" 

He leaned in and kissed me on the cheek, "I'll see you at dinner then, bye wise girl" then walked down the hallway and went into his room which was near our rooms.  
OMGS he just kissed me on the cheek. I couldn't believe it. I closed my door to my room and just sighed. I could get used to living here. 

\- 2 months later -  
It's been two months since the selection started. The group has been reduced to Rachel, Reyna, Piper, Lucia, and me. It's only us five, everyone else has been sent home. Percy and I go on a regular date each Friday. If you have been wondering if we have kissed yet the answer is no. Percy always kisses my cheek and i'm okay with that. I really like him, i hope he likes me back. He seems to like Rachel since they talk all the time and they go on dates too. Percy tells me that he doesn't like Reyna but he has to keep her here, something because of her father. Percy also told me his best friend, Jason (I think he is a guard) , likes Piper, so that's why she is still here. Never really asked why I'm here but i'm guessing that he likes having me around. 

I walk around the hallway looking for the library since I was in dire need of reading. Once I found the library, I went inside and spend the entire day reading books. Piper was also here she read some books on some artists and then drew a picture. The library was my favorite place to be if I wanted some alone time. I did a lot of thinking here, and figuring out my feelings. I liked Percy but I still like Luke even after what he did to me. I just don't know what to do...  
I walked out the library and ran into a guard who was walking down the hallway.

"Oh i'm so sorry" I said picking up my books. He helped put them in my hand.

"Don't worry it's okay" Said a voice that I recognized but wasn't very excited to hear. I looked up and saw...Luke. I looked around to make sure there wasn't anyone.

"What are you doing here?" I whispered/yelled. I can't believe he had the nerve to come here.

"I was drafted to be a guard. So now I am here, I'm also here to apologize for everything and make you mine again. Annabeth I miss you so much, you know I can't live without you." He said whispering back. I rolled my eyes and scoffed. I wasn't going to fall for that again. 

"I would never forgive you for what you did. You broke my heart " Tears were starting to form in my eyes. "Also I'm never going to yours again, I'm part of the selection now. The rules state I can't have romantic relationship in the palace. Plus I like Percy he is much more of a gentleman than you ever were." I said and left the hallway tears fell out but I made no sound. I ran all the way into my room and saw that Percy saw me crying. I opened my door and ran inside my room and sat on my bed and quietly cried.   
It was silent for a couple of minutes until I heard a couple of knocks on my door. I wiped my tears and went for the door. I opened it and Percy looked very worried. I let him inside and I closed the door. I started crying and Percy wrapped me in a hug and right now this is the only place I want to be in right now. In the loving arms of Percy.


	5. Chapter 5

Percy held me tight as I told him the story. Of course I wasn’t stupid enough to mention that Luke was a guard here. Percy looked at me and I could really see that he didn’t like me crying. He wiped the tears of my face and said  
“It’s okay, I’m here. I know you’re upset right now but I just want to tell you I really like you and I hate seeing you like this. If that jerk were here I would give him a piece of my mind. He doesn’t deserve you Annabeth, you deserve someone who cares about you and loves you. Not some guy who decides to kiss another girl while in a relationship.” He hugs me tighter, I look at him and smile. At that moment I forgot all about Luke and just thought about Percy. I lean in and kiss him, and no it’s not a kiss on the check like we usually do. This is a real kiss. I felt like a million fireworks just lit up in my stomach. I pulled away so we had our foreheads touching. We were both smiling, in that moment I could feel that we both felt the same way about each other. I looked away and hugged him again.  
“Thank you so much for being here Percy. Thanks for listening to my problems.” I got out of his arms and went to my mirror and tried make my eyes less bloodshot.  
“Your welcome, and if you need me I’ll always be here” He said. He looked at his watch “Well I have to leave now, have to finish planning the Christmas Party.”  
I looked away from the mirror and nodded. We headed to the door and before he left, he kissed me and said “I’ll see you later okay?”  
“yeah, later Percy” I said as closed the door. I thought about what happened and had a little fangirl attack. Percy and I actually KISSED! TWICE! I think I was a little loud because my maids came into my room and asked if something was wrong. I just laughed and told them I was fine. I looked at the clock that was settled in my nightstand. 6:30. Time really flew by, I mean I went to the library at 4 and left at 5. So Percy and I talked for about an hour and a half. I had to hurry up because I was supposed to meet Piper before dinner. She said she had something important to tell me.  
-About an Hour later-  
I knocked on Piper’s door and she opened it and let me inside. Piper’s room looked just like mine except her colors were native american. Mine were all white.  
“Annabeth I need your help” Piper said while fixing her hair.  
“What is it Piper?” I asked curious at what Piper had to say.  
“You know Jason the guard?” she said. I looked at her “yeah what about him?”  
“He asked me out on a date.” She said while smiling at me.  
“Oh my gods Piper, that’s great but not so great at the same time.” I said “Piper we can’t have relationships here at the palace while in the selection. It’s against the rules, we don’t know what the consequences for you and Jason if you guys get caught.”  
Piper looked at me and said “That’s why I need your help. Since Percy spends a lot of time with you, I thought you talk to him about Jason and I.”  
I looked at Piper and widened my eyes “Piper I would never do that because that's basically telling him you are having a relationship in the palace and the consequences are huge. I don’t want you to get in huge trouble. What I suggest is to have dates that are small and that don’t attract attention to yourself. Percy will eventually find out but I think he’ll be okay because Jason is his best friend. Or the other option is to not be in the selection, then you can have all the dates you want.”  
She looked at me and said “No way am I missing, you and Percy’s wedding. I’m staying in the selection and making sure you and Percy end up together because you guys are so perfect for each other. And as for Jason, i’ll just be careful when we go on dates so we don’t get caught. Now let's get to dinner because I am starving”  
I smiled at Piper and nodded. We headed to the dining room and I sat down next to Rachel who was sitting next to Percy. Piper sat down next to me and started talking to Lucia. Today we were having steak and vegetables. As I ate I kept trying to forget what happened in the afternoon with Luke. It did not help that he was one of the guards who stood watch in the dining room. I tried to avoid him and instead looked at Percy. He caught me looking at him and pointed at me and drew a heart in the air with his hands and pointed at himself. Wow such a seaweed brain...XD. I laughed and shook my head and blew him a kiss. He caught it and held it in his heart. I laughed so much at that.  
Dinner ended early today since the King and Queen had to go to a meeting. I walked back to my room and changed into my nightgown and fell asleep thinking about the kisses I shared with Percy.


	6. Chapter 6

I looked at my window as I saw snowflakes falling from the sky. This is very rare here in Angeles, we usually never get any snow. This took my breath away, it’s been a two months since what happened with Luke and I try in every way to avoid him. The holidays were coming up, in about a week or so which made me miss home. The sweet scent that came from the kitchen where mom cooks her famous lasagna for Christmas, the laughs of my little brothers playing with their toys, my dad’s smile when he sees all of us working together in the kitchen. I miss all of those moments. I miss my family back home, yet Piper and Percy were my family now here. I wiped a tear off my face and changed into a simple day dress. My maids curled my hair and grabbed a head band for me. I grabbed my beige high heels and left the room to look for Piper.   
I strolled down the hall ignoring all the looks Reyna kept giving me. Reyna hated me for spending way too much time with Percy. Like...it’s not my fault that he doesn’t want to hang out with you. I reached Piper’s room and knocked on the door. She opened it and walked out.   
“Hey let’s go to the Women’s Room today” Piper said enthusiastically. I simply nodded and followed her. When we entered we saw Queen Sally sitting on the couch and her maids doing her nails. We curtsied and sat on a set of couches near the windows. I looked outside, I caught Piper looking at me weirdly.   
“Okay, what’s wrong?” Piper asked concerned. I just sigh and look at her.   
“I’m just homesick that’s all. I miss my family and my friends back at home.” I said as I tried to push away all the memories. A loud bang made me snap out of my thoughts, I turned around to the sound. A maid had dropped her tray, she was picking up all the things she dropped. I stood up and helped her pick up all the things, I gave her a smile and she smiled back. Once all the things were picked up, she curtsied at me and left the room. I walked back to where Piper was.   
“Don’t you miss your home?” I ask curious. I see Piper sigh and shake her head.   
“Not really, I never had any siblings or friends back at home. It was just me and my dad. My mother left when I was born so I never met her.” She said sadly. I nodded and looked out the window, the garden looked so beautiful covered in a blanket of snow.   
~  
I looked around and saw that all the girls were nervous. Percy had called us all down to the Library to talk to us about something. Piper was fanning her face, I gave her a smile.   
“You have nothing to worry about. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t involve you.” I said. I knew she was worried that Percy had found out about her secret relationship with Jason. I’m pretty sure he doesn’t. Even though he can be smart sometimes, Percy can be pretty dumb too. Reyna kept giving me evil glares. I shrugged them off because I really couldn’t care about what Reyna thought.   
Percy walked in with his mother by his side. He seemed happy to see us, he gave us a big smile. He bowed and we curtsied.  
“Ladies, I called you here today to announce that we are having some guests over this Christmas. The Italian royal family and the French royal family will be visiting us. We will have a grand celebration, there will be dance lessons each tuesday so you ladies will be ready for the party. Now I have to go and finish some work. My mother will tell you some other important things. I will see you all at lunch.” He said and looked at me then left.   
Queen Sally gave us a warm smile “This is a very important event for the selection. You girls have to be on your best behavior and make sure you make the Italians and French feel welcome. You will be separated into groups and be given some tasks to accomplish so that the event is successful. Piper and Annabeth both of you will be in charge of the entertainment and music. Reyna, Rachel, and Lucia you ladies will be in charge of the decorations. You will be picking out the flowers and all the christmas decorations. You guys will have all week to work on this. The Party is next tuesday, which is christmas eve.” She said. I was so nervous, Piper and I had to come up with something soon. Let’s hope all of this turns out fine.


	7. Chapter 7

I rubbed my eyes as I tried to stay awake. Piper and I have been working on our project all night, but we still couldn’t figure out what to do with the music.   
“Maybe we could sing?” I suggested. Piper looked at me and thought about it.   
“That doesn’t sound that bad. We need to pick out a couple of songs. I have some written down here somewhere” She says while moving papers around. I get up from my desk and grab a guitar and started playing my favorite song “Back to you” by Twin Forks. I sit down on my bed and started playing it and singing.  
“I was young so I forgot, which was my place and which was not. Thought i had a good shot, i took it right in my eyes..”   
Piper shot up and joined me “Look ahead, look behind, take another, i don’t mind. I, oh , I , Oh”   
“Follow the signs, right back to you, back to you , back to you. I know they wind right back to you, back to you.” We stopped singing and I stopped playing. We smiled at each other and laughed.  
“You know Back To You by Twin Forks?” I said. Piper nodded and said “Of course, It’s one of my favorite songs”   
Piper and I agreed that we were both going to sing that song at the party. We also found this awesome band that plays a lot of traditional music. Piper and I thought It would be nice to have a photo booth so at the party everyone could take pictures. We did more planning for about 2 more hours then we called it a night. Once Piper left, I went to sleep.   
I woke up to the sound of my maids. I rubbed my eyes open and got out of bed. I went to my vanity and brushed my hair and turned around to look at my closet. My maids had left me with this really cute yellow dress and some yellow heels. I changed into the dress and put on the heels and put a yellow head band on my hair and left for breakfast. Once I got there, Percy looked at me and smiled. I walked around to where Piper was and saw he still kept looking at me. I blushed and sat down next to Piper.   
“Hey” Piper said as I sat down.   
“Hey, wanna go to the Library after breakfast?” I asked her. She shook her head.   
“Sorry, I can’t” She then whispered “Jason and I are going on a date today after breakfast”   
“Oh my gods, that awesome! Have fun on your date.” I said whispering. Piper smiled at me and went back to eating her eggs. This morning we were having eggs and bacon……YES! I LOVE eggs and bacon. As I was eating and having small talk with Lucia, I caught Percy looking at me. I flashed him a smile, and he smiled back. Once I was done eating, I left the dining room and headed straight to the Library.   
~  
The clock struck 3. I didn’t even realize I spend so much time here. I walked out of the Library only to see Luke in the hallway. I paused and turned around and went the other way. I fast walked until I didn’t see Luke. I looked around and I didn’t recognize where I was. I saw a door cracked open, I peeked in and see someone sitting on their bed drawing, they didn’t have a shirt on which was very distracting. The more I watched, the more I realized that the person drawing was Percy. I blushed and slowly walked away. As I was walking away I heard a voice.  
“I saw you Wise Girl” I blushed and silently cursed. I turn around and open the door. I curtsied and smile at him. It very hard to concentrate when he doesn’t have a shirt on. UGH!  
“Sorry to eavesdrop Percy, I got lost in the Palace and found myself here.” I said shyly. He chuckled lightly and patted the spot next to him on his bed. I sat down next to him.   
“It’s okay, I was just about to go look for you. I wanted to ask you if you wanted to spend the evening together. Do you want to?” He asked looking at me. I smiled and my inner fangirl started screaming.   
“I would love that, sure” Percy seemed happier after I said that. I look over at his drawing and gasp. It’s beautiful…it's a picture of the garden.  
“Percy this is really good!” I say looking at it. Percy smiles.   
“Thanks, I just finished it and I was going to hang it up in my room.” Percy gets up and I can’t keep my eyes off his chest. I shake my head and focus on his eyes. He walks up to a spot on the wall and makes a square out of his fingers.  
“I think this is a perfect spot to put it. Don’t you think?” He says looking back at me. I nod and grab the drawing and put it on the wall.   
“It looks perfect, right here Percy.”  
“Think so too.” Percy grabs the drawing from my hand and puts it at his desk.   
“So, what do you want to do?” I ask him. Percy looked surprised, I wonder if he was ever asked that question.  
“Well, we could go outside or we could watch a movie? Which one do you prefer?” He asks.   
“Which one do you prefer?” I ask him, he thought about it then went to his drawer and grabbed a shirt and put it on.   
“I’m thinking about watching a movie. The Outsiders maybe?” He says as we walk out of his room.   
I laugh and nod. The Outsiders is one of my favorite movies, Sodapop is my favorite. As we were walking down the hall on our way to the screening room, Percy and I talked about our favorite things. He seemed so happy at that moment but what happened next was something no one expected.   
~  
I woke up in a bed, a wet towel was on my forehead. As I opened my eyes, I see Percy standing in a corner. His face was all scratched and his clothes had blood all over them. Once he saw me he rushed to me and kissed me.   
“Are you alright, I thought I lost you.” He says. He was about to cry but held his tears back.   
“I’m fine what happened?” I said looking at all the people in the room. Piper, Jason, Reyna, Rachel, and Luke were here. I looked at my surroundings and realized we were in a safe room.  
“The rebels attacked us. The blew up sections of the Palace and they blew up the section we were in. I don’t know how they got in, but the blast hurt both of us. You fell to the floor and you had a huge cut on your forehead it was bleeding a lot. I had some injuries too but they weren’t as bad as yours. I carried you to the nearest safe room after what happened. I don’t know if all the girls made it to the safe rooms. I’m just praying they did.” Percy said looking so sad. I reached and grabbed his hand.  
“It's okay, I’m okay and the other girls are probably fine. I know Lucia and she sure would have made it to the safe room near her room.”  
Percy sighed and I sat up in the bed. I look towards Piper and see that she is crying but Jason is comforting her. Reyna kept looking at her fingernails. Rachel played with her fingers. I could hear the sound of gunshots, and screaming. I wiped away tears that were falling on my face. Percy saw the tears on my face and wiped them away and hugged me. He then went to talk to the other girls. He hugged every single one of them and told them everything was fine. After a couple of minutes, the gun shots seemed to fade and the palace was silent. A radio inside the safe room announced that it was safe to come out now. I got up and walked to my room.   
It was a mess. Everything was on the floor, there was some blood on my walls and bullet holes. I sighed and started cleaning up. I couldn’t do anything about the bullet holes but I was able to wash out the blood on the walls. I cleaned my room and then headed to bed and slept the night away.


	8. Chapter 8

It’s been a couple of days since the rebel attack. Things have gotten back to normal. The palace was getting ready for the party after all Christmas was tomorrow. Piper and I were sitting in my room double checking everything we planned. 

“So is the photo booth ready?” She asks looking at all the papers. I walk to my night table and grab a sheet of paper.

“Yeah, the maids are setting it up later in the evening.” I say as I start to draw an owl. I sigh, life hasn’t been the same since the rebel attack. Percy seems a little distant and we don’t talk as much as we used to. He seems to spend more time with Rachel. 

“Annabeth, I have to go get ready for the Christmas eve party. I’ll see you then okay?” Piper says before walking out. I nod and she leaves. 

I stand up from my bed and decide to go to the Library. Maybe that could take my mind away from Percy. I was walking to the hallway when I tripped over something and fell right on my face. A laugh echoed the hallway, I look up and see that that laugh was from Rachel. That little bitch just tripped me! I shrugged it off and walked to the library.

Rachel has been being mean to me for the past couple of days. I just ignore it but it’s getting a little annoying. I walk out of the library and see Percy walking by. He smiles and and walks over. 

“Hey wise girl” He says calmly. 

“Hey seaweed brain, I haven’t seen you in a long time.” I say kind of sadly. 

He looks at me and grabs my hands “I’m sorry, I’ve been really busy. My dad says I have to spend equal amount of time with each girl. Don’t worry we can have the day to ourselves tomorrow.” 

I smile and nod “That would be great.” 

Percy smiles then he leaves. I walk around the palace, helping maids out with the decoration, when I saw Luke. He walked to me.  
“Good Morning, Lady Annabeth.” He says formally. 

“Good Morning, Officer Castellan” I say while hanging up some ornaments on the tree in the hallway. He grabbed some and started putting them on the tree.  
“Need more help?” He asked. I nod and keep putting them on. Silence filled the hallway as we decorated the tree. I have nothing to say to Luke so it was super awkward. Breaking the silence Luke spoke up.

“Annabeth, please say something. I can’t stand not having you speak to me.” 

I sighed “Look Luke you hurt me, how do you want me to react, like I’m okay with it? No.”

“Annabeth I’m really sorry I hurt you. Can we just be friends?” He says and I could really see that he was sincere. 

“I don’t know Luke. You really hurt me and I don’t know if i’m ready to be friends with you yet” I say hanging an angel on the tree. Luke nods and keeps hanging ornaments on the tree. Once we were done we said our goodbyes and then he left. 

I sighed and remembered all the things we did together but I shrugged them all away. I walked down the hallway and bumped into someone and fell on the ground.  
“I’m so sorry, I didn’t see where I was going.” A voice said helping me up. I looked up and say a boy, no older than 17 years old. He had brown hair and brown eyes, he smelled like the ocean just like Percy did. 

“It’s okay, I wasn’t looking either.” I say laughing. 

“My name is Tyson, what's your name?” He says smiling. 

“My name is Annabeth, nice to meet you” I smile. Tyson’s eyes widen and then said   
“Wait..your Annabeth? My brother has been talking about you non stop but he didn’t tell me you were this beautiful.” I blushed and smiled.

“Thank you. Who is your brother?” I ask wondering who this mysterious guy is.

“Oh Percy. He’s my half brother” He says calmly. I start smiling and blushing so badly. I can’t believe Percy talks about me. I can’t wait for tomorrow.   
“I didn’t know he had a brother.” 

“Yeah most people don’t. Percy and I have the same dad but different moms. My mom died after I was born so my dad brought me here and Sally took me in as her own. Percy and I have done everything together since that day.” Tyson said while fixing his hair. Tyson was handsome too, I guess that was a gene King Poseidon gave his children. 

“So Tyson how old are you?” I ask him wondering if I was right. 

“Oh I’m 17” He said and I smiled. I WAS RIGHT! 

Tyson and I then spent the day talking about Percy and he told me every single stupid thing he has done. All of the stories are adorable. Tyson is actually really nice and we have become good friends. We both were walking down the hallway laughing at one of the stories Tyson told me when Percy was at the end of the hallway talking to his mom. He saw us laughing and smiled. I waved at him and he waved back. He walked over to us. 

“What are you guys laughing about?” he said curiosity showing all over his face. 

“Tyson told me the story where you fell into the fountain outside” I started laughing. He blushed and looked away.

“Tyson! I told you to never speak of that moment again.” Percy said looking at his brother.

“Come on Percy, it’s really funny” Tyson said laughing.

Percy shakes his head and laughs and rolls his eyes. 

“So what are you doing?” Tyson asked his brother. 

“We are just getting everything ready, for the Christmas party and for when the guests arrive today.” Percy said showing us the dinner hall how it was getting decorated. It was beautiful, ornaments hanging from trees and lights shining brightly from the room. 

Queen Sally saw us and walked over to us.   
“Hello my children, and hello lady Annabeth” she said.

I curtsied and said “Hello your majesty” 

She smiled at me and looked at Percy “Percy you and your brother should start getting ready the guests will be here in a couple of hours and I don’t want you both to be late again.” 

“We won’t mom don’t worry. I’ll makes sure we get there on time.” Percy said and looks at Tyson. Tyson shrugs then laughs quietly.   
“Okay I’ll see you then, goodbye boys and goodbye lady Annabeth” Queen Sally walked into the dinner hall. 

“I should start getting ready for the party” I say while looking at a clock showing that the time was 5:00. 

“I’ll walk to your room besides you have to hear my side of the story.” Percy said while grabbing my hand. I smile and nod. I waved goodbye to Tyson and he waved back then left. 

We walked to my room as Percy told me how he fell in the fountain outside. 

“I’m pretty sure Tyson tripped me” Percy said laughing. 

I look at him “Come on seaweed brain, just admit it you're clumsy” 

He looked at me and laughed “Okay maybe I am but for most of the time i’m not clumsy.”

We arrived at my room and my maids dragged me in. Percy laughed and gave me a kiss   
“I’ll see you at the party” 

“Bye Percy” He closed my door then my maids started changing me into this beautiful dress. It was red and had lace on the top. I loved it. My maids gave me some red heels to wear and they curled my hair and put a rose in my hair. 

An hour and a half later~

I was ready for the Christmas party. I walked out with Piper and Lucia. We were all supposed to meet the guests and make them feel welcomed. All the selection girls were standing in the hallway and the royal family was standing with us too. The main doors opened and the Italian and French royal family walked in and at that moment I knew this was going to be an unforgettable night.


	9. Chapter 9

A loud bell ringed echoed through the hallway. It was now 7:00, I sighed and entered the ballroom. Music and chatter filled my ears. People were laughing and dancing along to the music. I smiled people loved our entertainment. Piper and I are going to sing later on but not right now. Piper saw me and smiled and waved at me. 

I walked to her “Hey Piper, people are really having fun!” 

Piper smiled and nodded “I know, we are great party planners. I’m going to start planning your wedding after this.” 

I laughed and smiled at her. Jason came over to us and asked Piper if she wanted to dance with him. Of course she would say yes, I mean come on! They’re dating. I walked to one of the tables that was free and sat down. I was sitting alone until someone sat in front of me.

“Hello there, I’m Princess Natalia” She smiled at me. I studied her, she was beautiful. She was wearing a dark red dress and brown hair was in curls and filled with jewels.

“Pleasure to meet you, your majesty. I’m Annabeth” I said smiling at her. Her eyes widen and she says “Oh so you’re the Prince’s favorite, he’s been talking about you all night” 

I blush and smile “I don’t think I’m his favorite, we just know each other well.” 

Princess Natalia laughs “Okay then” 

“How are you enjoying the party, your majesty?” I asked. She smiled   
“Very good actually, I haven’t had this much fun since my brother’s party” 

I smiled and she sat down and we started talking more. Her full name was Natalia Rosa Vitalli. She was 19 years old and she was engaged to the Prince of France. This was her first party with him. She also told me all the fun things she did when she was younger. I laughed when she told me about how she tried to make pasta and ended up pouring flour all over herself. I caught Percy looking at me, I smiled at him. He smiled back and walked over to us.

“Good Evening your majesty” He said bowing to Princess Natalia. “And good evening to you M’lady” Percy said kissing my hand. I smiled and blushed  
“Percy I could see you looking at me from a mile away. I didn’t see you as a stalker seaweed brain.” I laughed. 

Percy stuck out his tongue “I wasn’t stalking you. I was just looking at you from afar” 

I laughed and smiled “Okay sure seaweed brain.” 

“Want to dance with me wise girl?” Percy asked, putting his hand out. I took it and nodded. I looked back and Princess Natalia gave me a thumbs up.

A slow song played, Percy brought me closer to him. We were dancing to the music, nothing mattered. It felt like we were the only people there. I put my head on his chest and sighed. We stayed like this for two more songs then he dragged me to the hallway. 

“Okay so there is this tradition between Tyson and I. At midnight we have a nerf gun fight. Tyson is hard to beat so I was wondering if you would like to help me”   
Percy said smiling. I loved when Percy’s childish side came out. It one of the many things I loved about him. Wait did I just say that I loved Percy? Oh gods, no this can’t be happening. I promised myself I would never love again after what happened with Luke. I look at Percy’s eyes, he would never hurt me. I was sure of that. I tucked my love for him away, maybe I could tell him that later on. 

I smiled at him “Sure seaweed brain. Tyson is going down” 

He smiled at me and told me all about their tradition. The nerf guns were hidden all over the palace and he had a map of where they were. They even made up rules! I was trying to understand all of this because I really wanted to play. I took off my high heels and left them on the couch. 

“Okay so what’s the plan. It’s almost midnight” I said while running back to him. 

“Okay so at the east wing of the palace, there is table which has a nerf gun. We grab that one first, then we hid in the east hallway. Tyson likes to roam where the east and west hallway connect. After we get that nerf gun, we go to the west wing and grab a nerf gun from the couch. Then we fight him in the connection hallway.” Percy says explaining.

“Okay wait what happens if we get shot?” I ask. 

“You lose a life, we have three and if you lose all three we lose. The loser has to do whatever the other person wants. We better win because I don’t want to do Tyson’s laundry again” Percy said laughing. 

I smiled “Okay let’s do this” I grabbed my dress and ran with Percy. We were running to the east wing until the Queen sees us.   
“Damn it” Percy says whispering “Hello mother” he says.

“Perseus, be careful I don’t want you getting hurt. Also” She looked at us “Good luck beating Tyson”

“Thanks Mom, we will be careful. Now we have to go before midnight” Percy says and grabs my hand and runs. I pass the Queen and smile at her and she just gave me a thumbs up. 

We arrive at the east hall and Percy looks around and finds a small coffee table and looks under it. “Found ya!” He pulls out a nerf gun. He gives it to me “Here you go M’lady” 

I grab it “Thank you kind sir” I smile. Then we both run to where the east hall and west hall connect and sure enough Tyson is there getting ready. I look at a clock and Midnight is two minutes away, We pass Tyson undetected and run to the west wing. Percy runs to the purple couch and puts his hand under the couch and grabs the nerf gun down there. 

“Okay Wise girl we are ready” He said and we ran back to where the east hall and west hall connect. We see Tyson and he smirks “Okay let the games begin. We have 1 minute to run and hide. When the clock strikes 12, the games begin. May the best shooter win” He said taking out his hand. I shook it and Percy did too.   
“Be prepared to lose, Tyson” I said crossing my arms. 

“We will see Annabeth” Tyson says smirking. Then he bolted and we ran the opposite way.   
We were in the west hall and Percy hid behind a chair. I hid behind a wall. “Okay Percy what’s the plan?”

“Okay so Tyson likes to shoot and run. We will use that to our advantage, we can outrun him before he recharges his nerf gun” Percy says whispering.   
I nod and I hear the clock strike 12. I get in my position, I smile at Percy and give him a thumbs up and he smiles at me and gives me a thumbs up back.   
Okay let’s do this, Let the games begin! You are so going down Tyson!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey weirdos! 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the first Chapter! This is my first story on here but you can also find this story on Wattpad as well.


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